In the post-truth world where alternative facts are worshipped and logic is insulted, internet trolls thrive. Often, they are sponsored by corporations or political parties with an agenda in mind, eager to further this agenda by swaying public opinion by establishing a culture of rampant self-censorship, cyber-bullying and whataboutism on social media.

In such a miserable environment, fake news is not only created, it also thrives. And more often than not the widespread traction of such frivolous stories is manufactured, engineered by the same organisations who look to gain from the confusion that fake news causes.

Dr Kafeel Khan’s mistake was that he was dutiful

On the night of August 10, it was Khan who decided to take control of the situation by driving to private homes to borrow oxygen cylinders, reported DNA. Khan even paid Rs 10,000 to an oxygen supplier out of his own pocket, reported CNN-News18.

Khan was removed from his position on Sunday, 13 August, on charges of “dereliction of duty” and for “carrying out private practice”.

Khan, a paediatrician, and a former principal of the medical college, Dr RK Mishra, were responsible for ensuring a steady supply of oxygen cylinders in the medical college, hospital sources said. (Mishra himself was suspended on Saturday after which he resigned.)

Khan became a hero on social media after he reportedly spent from his own pocket to arrange three oxygen cylinders at BRD Medical College on Thursday night when the supply of liquid oxygen stopped.

Confirming his removal from the post, Dr Khan told The Times of India, “It’s a smear campaign against me. I was only trying to help the children. I did everything from getting in touch with oxygen firms to ensuring prompt help to patients.”

Dr. Kafeel Khan removed as the Nodal Officer for the Department of Pediatrics of Baba Raghav Das Medical College, #Gorakhpur.

Khan’s removal took the country by surprise. For the past week, even as the death toll in Gorakhpur escalated, Khan was a ray of light amidst the despair. He was hailed as “the hero doctor” and a “one-man army” for his efforts in containing the situation and for using his own money to purchase oxygen cylinders for the children when the underfunded hospital failed to elicit a response from the government.

The list of charges lengthened on social media where within moments there were countless allegations against Khan from rape to conspiracy against the UP government. The smear campaign evolved along clearly communal lines as people online took to attacking Dr Khan for being a Muslim. Sure enough, shouts of being a “traitor” and “anti-national” soon followed, all the while being based on false claims and frivolous charges (explained below).

Baseless allegations and outright lies meant to distract people from the real issue of how the government & hospital could allow the Gorakhpur tragedy to happen

There were allegations of rape against Dr Khan in 2015. The Gorakhpur Police, after investigating, threw away the charges in its final report on April 3, 2015 (see FIR copy here). The police concluded that the allegations were part of a conspiracy and an attempt to malign Khan’s image.

Khan has been accused of “illegally” running a private practice alongside his work at the government-run BRD Medical Hospital. This is meaningless: firstly, many government doctors have a private practice on the side and, more importantly, this is not illegal. In 2011, the Supreme Court ruled that doctors in government hospitals can have a private practice alongside the same freely. Besides, Khan’s cousin told The Quint that he left his private practice after getting a job in BRD Medical College.

Therefore, this is an accusation of illegality over something legal that never existed in the first place.

There were many other allegations – like Khan “stealing oxygen” from the hospital (How? By transporting it across the atmosphere from his office to his home?) and his dislike for the Yogi Adityanath government (Disgustingly, fake tweets were manufactured in his name to create the impression that he was anti-Adityanath and unverified tweets from an unverified account carrying his name that is now deleted has been hastily attributed to him; and when did it become a crime to not support a politician?).

Khan himself gave a statement to the media saying the allegations against him were false and appealed to people to stop spreading rumours about him on Facebook and WhatsApp.

“Please stop spreading rumours saying ‘Dr Kafeel Ahmed is a Muslim,’ or ‘Dr Kafeel Ahmed is a fraud’. I am an Indian first and foremost and all I did I did as a doctor, which is my profession,” he said.

Kafeel Khan is being made a scapegoat for the government’s mistakes

In Dr Kafeel Khan’s dismissal, the medical fraternity saw a shameless – and predictable – attempt by politicians and bureaucrats to shirk responsibility, not own up to their mistakes and instead shift the blame on others.

“Doctors are being made scapegoats,” said Dr Harjit Singh Bhatti, who heads an association of resident doctors at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS). The association has written a letter condemning Khan’s sacking, accusing the state government of “gross neglect of public health.” By blaming doctors for the death of the children, the association told NDTV, “politicians are hiding their incompetence,” and asked, “Who is responsible if oxygen, gloves, equipment not available?”

Writing on Firstpost, Sandipan Sharma called the tactic “diversionary” and a “classic red-herring”:

“The Gorakhpur tragedy is a blot on India. More than 70 (and counting) infants died within a week because the Uttar Pradesh government and BRD Medical College administration allowed it to turn into a death trap by not paying in time for maintaining the supply of oxygen. In any other country with a conscience, morals and a rule of law, this would have been unequivocally called murder by dereliction of duty. Instead, its aftermath tells us, as Pratap Bhanu Mehta writes, we have become a nation without common decency, common practicality and basic compassion.”

If allegations are the only factor it takes for the public to judge a person’s innocence and character then we should immediately demand the resignation and imprisonment of most of our politicians.

The smear campaign against Dr Kafeel Khan shows a lot about the kind of people we are. Some among us were party to manufacturing these fake news stories, many among us shared these stories, believing them without second thought. Both practices should be vigorously condemned by all of us if truth and facts mean anything anymore.

The UP government is trying hard to distract the public but it will not and should not succeed in doing this. The country still has not come to terms with how a tragedy like Gorakhpur could be allowed to occur in this day and age. Being distracted by Dr Khan’s surname and non-existent controversies serves no purpose other than enabling politicians to elude accountability.

We should not let this happen at any cost. It is time we pushed back the spotlight on the medical and administrative mismanagement that led to the Gorakhpur tragedy.

Another Gorakhpur Tragedy Strikes UP: 49 Children Die Due To “Lack Of Oxygen” In Farrukhabad Govt Hospital

Partner Story

Even at 76, Pradip Burman, the zestful chairman of Mobius Foundation radiates a contagious enthusiasm when he is talking about sustainability. The environmental crusader, better known to many as the great-grandson of Dabur founder Dr S.K.Burman, has devoted substantial attention towards promoting the concept of sustainability in all aspects of life. He refuses to conform to the convenience and comfort in today’s world which ultimately adds on to the adverse effects of climate change.

Talking to The Logical Indian, Burman emphasised why sustainability as a concept is indispensable for us. “We ought to be aware of what lies ahead of us. Soon we will finish the oil, iron, tin, and coal, and our next generations will be left with nothing. Recycling, banning plastics, stop felling trees for paper… This should become a part of everyone’s lifestyle,” he urges.

Mr Burman watering a sapling at the tree plantation drive organised by his non-profit Mobius Foundation

Traditional wisdom and modern research

A mechanical engineer from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), USA, Burman had always nurtured a keen interest in helping the society, as evident from his graduation project of designing a sonic aid for the visually challenged, which detected obstacles in the way using ultrasonic wave signals.

As an executive for the nature-centric company Dabur, Burman has always opted for natural alternatives to solve his everyday problems like taking Ayurvedic medicine to cure his Arthritis. He later launched the veterinary wing for Dabur – Ayurvet – which provides nature-friendly solutions for animal health care.

A patron of the ancient scientific wisdom of India, Burman always hailed the confluence of “traditional knowledge and modern research”, which he advocated as the Ayurvet motto.

Ayurvet is one of the best ventures by Mr Burman

As part of the CSR initiative of Dabur, Pradip Burman founded SUNDESH (Sustainable Development Society) which has been tirelessly working for last 25 years in remote villages for uplifting the rural communities in an environmentally sustainable way.

An advocate of sustainability

Burman believes that sustainability is the indispensable mantra for the world at present. Due to uncontrolled utilisation of the planet’s resources by human beings, the world today stands at a juncture of destabilisation. Today the human race has reached the pinnacle of progress but the advancement is happening in a very unsustainable manner.

Through energy-efficient use of everyday essentials like transport, communication, altered habits of diet, clothing and daily living, some crusaders of sustainability try to reduce their carbon footprint. Pradip Burman’s Mobius Foundation is one of the forerunners toward sustainability goals.

Mobius Foundation aims to change the sustainability dynamics

In 2015, Burman paved the way for the start of Mobius Foundation, focused on sustainability. Named after 18th-century German mathematician August Ferdinand Mobius, the famous Mobius strip has an important philosophical significance. The extraordinary shape symbolises balance and union.

Similar is the essence of Mobius Foundation which wishes to enhance the “Reduce, Reuse, Recycle” principle to a widespread basis in India, helping generations to come.

Founder Pradip Burman wishes to achieve notable development in education, population stabilisation and renewable energy projects.

A dream school in the making

At Coorg, Pradip Burman’s Mobius Foundation is constructing the World Environment School, Coorg (WESc) where the curriculum will surpass the boundaries of books and classrooms, with a special focus on hands-on learning in close collaboration with the environment. Amidst the pristine natural beauty of Coorg, the school will nurture young minds to grow up into future green leaders. As of now, the school will be open to teenagers, welcoming students from standards 6 to 12.

Needless to say, World Environment School will be the first-of-its-kind not only in India but also in entire South Asia. The school is expected to start from March 2020.

The school promises to nurture the responsible behaviour of citizens of our future.

The Sustainability Conference of 2019

In 2019, the Mobius Foundation has planned an international conference, on the lines of the celebrated earth summits over the past decade. The 2019 International Conference on Sustainability Education (ICSE 2019) aims to bring together environmental activists, practitioners of sustainable development as well as climate change experts to help develop a sustainability-focused curriculum.

It is surmised that the conference will give a platform to innovative concepts of Sustainability Education including an essential change in the existing education system ensuring a wholesome personal development for a student.

The Sustainability crusader

The Mobius founder strongly believes that it is high time to sprout sustainability awareness among a society drowning in consumerism and unknowingly doing irreparable harm to the planet, every second. The best way to achieve this goal is through education which is available to all. At present, the education system is predominantly career-oriented, making the learners a victim of materialism, and thus, their dreams are also outlined in those colours.

Living beyond the limits

When asked about his wish to attain the age of hundred, he strongly asserts that more than becoming a centurion, he wishes his life and work continue to better the society even in his absence. “I have lived my life. I wish that whatever I start before I go, will continue – for the betterment of my country,” says Mr Pradip Burman.

He is also a trustee of the Climate Reality Project – India (affiliated to Mr. Al Gore of the Climate Reality Project Foundation, USA). Climate Reality Project, India, has been actively engaged igniting the spark and spreading the message of climate change amongst educators, policy makers and civil society. The India branch looks after more than 500 trained Climate Leaders, and more than 900 volunteers spread all over the country.

In his journey, Pradip Burman has been a beacon of hope for millions, motivating many to join the movement for sustainability. We wish he continues his tireless efforts for promoting sustainability awareness and inspire generations to come.